The 2014 World Cup begins on June 12, when Brazil plays Croatia in the opening match. Reporters and editors for The Times will count down to the start of the tournament each day with a short capsule of news and interesting tidbits.
Nearly all 32 coaches preparing for the World Cup fear seeing an important player hobble off the playing field between now and June.
For Louis van Gaal of the Netherlands, that fear was realized when Roma midfielder Kevin Strootman, 24, was carted off the field 12 minutes into Sunday’s 1-0 loss at Napoli in Italy’s Serie A. Strootman, who left the stadium on crutches and underwent an operation on Monday, tore an anterior cruciate ligament and possibly damaged the meniscus in his left knee.
In a statement on the website of the Dutch federation, van Gaal said that he had talked with Strootman by telephone. “I can imagine his world is falling apart at the moment,” van Gaal said, describing Strootman’s possible absence from the squad going to Brazil as “a bloodletting for the Netherlands team.” He added: “This is dramatic for Kevin. I can imagine that his world right now just collapses. Kevin stood with both his club A.S. Roma, as with Orange for a very important time.”
Strootman is a left-footed midfielder who has played internationally 25 times for the Netherlands. He has been viewed as a player to build the team around for the future.
“Kevin played a major role in our qualification for the World Cup in Brazil,” van Gaal said. “But the worst is for Kevin, who sees his dream fall in tatters.”
Last Wednesday, Strootman had sustained a minor injury to his right knee in a friendly against France. This is Strootman’s first season in Serie A.
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source : nytimes.com